113 
The nest of Ailurmln s viridis , is a beautiful structure, being 
bowl-shaped, and composed exteriorly of long twigs, entwined 
around the large broad leaves of Ptarietia argyrodendron, and 
other broad-leaved trees, some of the leaves measuring eleven 
inches in length by four inches in breadth. The leaves appear to 
have been picked when green, so beautifully do they tit the rounded 
form of the nest, one side of which is almost hidden by them. The 
interior of the nest is lined entirely with line twigs. The nest of 
A ilurmdus viridis is similar to that of A. maculosus , but larger, 
and both of them can readily be distinguished from those of any 
other Australian bird by the peculiarity of having large broad 
leaves used in the construction of the exterior portion of the nest. 
The eggs of A. viridis are two in number for a sitting, oval in 
form, being but slightly compressed at the smaller end, of a uniform 
creamy-white very faintly tinged with green, the shell being 
comparatively smooth and slightly glossy. Length 1*66 inch x 
1*2 inch. 
Although the Cat-birds are usually included in the family of 
Bower-building birds, I have never known or heard of either 
species constructing a bower. This will cancel Dr. Ramsay’s 
description of the nest and eggs of the Cat-bird, which T have 
given in the Australian Museum Catalogue of the “ Nests and 
Eggs of Birds found breeding in Australia and Tasmania,” p. 17b. 
llab. Coastal Ranges of New South Wales and Southern 
Queensland. 
Sphecotiiekes m axillaris, Latham. Southern Sphocotheres. 
Gould , Ilandhk . lids. Anstr ., Yol. i., sp. 28G, p. 4G7. 
This species is widely dispersed through the brushes of the 
eastern coast of Australia, it is a well known species on the 
Richmond and Clarence Rivers, and Mr. Grime informs me it is 
fairly common on the Tweed River where it is locally known as the 
“ Mulberry-bird,” from the decided preference it evinces for that 
species of fruit amongst many others attacked by this bird. Mr. 
Grime has forwarded a nest and two eggs, taken on the 8th of 
November, 1890, together with the following notes. “I have 
found two nests this season of S. maxillaris , they were built in 
each instance oil the “Swamp Tea-tree,” at a height of about forty 
feet from the ground, the nests are attached by the rim to the 
thin branches of an outspreading bough, and what surprises me is 
how the eggs are not shaken out of the nest by the wind. The 
last nest I found, after climbing the tree to the limb on which the 
nest was placed, I reached out as far as I could on it and attached 
a piece of rope and then drew the limb to the main trunk and 
secured it, this brought the nest nearer, but above my head, so 
when I climbed farther up T could reach it, there were three eggs 
in the nest, but T broke one before reaching the ground.” 
